National Catholic Reporter: Content by Sara Anglehttp://ncronline.org/rss.xml/35680
enMonuments not the only sites drawing touristshttp://ncronline.org/news/faith-parish/monuments-not-only-sites-drawing-tourists
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Sara Angle </span>
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Catholic News Service </span>
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<p><strong>WASHINGTON</strong> (CNS) -- As the nation's capital, Washington has been visited by millions since its official founding July 16, 1790. </p><p>With sites such as the Washington Monument, White House, the Capitol, Library of Congress, the National Archives, Smithsonian museums, and countless monuments and cultural happenings, tourists from across the world come to Washington for a taste of U.S. history. </p><p>Lesser known perhaps, but no less fascinating, are the Catholic historical sites around the city that attract pilgrims. </p><p>Catholicism in the U.S. was born in the Washington region, and the area still plays a vital part in the U.S. Catholic Church. The District of Columbia is home to the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, seminaries, religious houses of prayer, and three prominent Catholic universities -- The Catholic University of America, Georgetown University and Trinity Washington University.</p> </section>
Fri, 29 Jul 2011 19:34:29 +0000Anonymous25943 at http://ncronline.orgAmeriCorps recognizes Notre Dame volunteers http://ncronline.org/news/americorps-recognizes-notre-dame-volunteers
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Sara Angle </span>
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Catholic News Service </span>
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<p><strong>WASHINGTON</strong> -- The Notre Dame Mission Volunteers, an AmeriCorps program, has received a renewal of its grant for the 2011 fiscal year, but the federal funding cuts for volunteer-based programs make the financial future of Notre Dame-AmeriCorps program unclear.</p><p>So this year's Notre Dame-AmeriCorps awards recognition ceremony, held July 15 at a Washington neighborhood social services center, had extra significance.</p><p>John Gomperts, national director of AmeriCorps, attended the ceremony to recognize the joint efforts of volunteers from Washington and Baltimore who are with Notre Dame-AmeriCorps, a Baltimore-based organization.</p><p>The event honored volunteers who had completed 1,700 hours of service.</p><p>Speaking of Notre Dame Mission Volunteers' grant renewal for the 2011 year, he said that "to have won in this competition is really a big deal," when so many groups are vying for federal funding.</p> </section>
Wed, 20 Jul 2011 18:17:23 +0000Anonymous25792 at http://ncronline.orgWorld's religions seen as solving conflicts http://ncronline.org/news/worlds-religions-seen-solving-conflicts
<span class="field field-name-field-byline field-type-node-reference field-label-hidden">
Sara Angle </span>
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Catholic News Service </span>
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<p><strong>WASHINGTON </strong>-- Few would argue against the notion that to solve conflict created by religious intolerance, prejudice and discrimination, it is essential to understand how religion motivates believers and shapes their worldviews, that respecting all religions is not enough.</p><p>While religion can be a cause of conflict, it carries political leverage that many say makes it a source for solutions and a tool for peace building.</p><p>"We are giving a whole government effort to put religion on the table," said the Rev. Suzan Johnson Cook, the new U.S. ambassador-at-large for international religious freedom.</p><p>The United States is "on the front lines of confronting conflict and urging and pressing governments" to fight for religious freedom, she told Catholic News Service in a phone interview.</p><p>Her comments came in response to remarks of participants in a recent panel discussion at the National Press Club in Washington on the role of faith-based diplomacy and the use of religion to resolve conflict, especially with regard to Pakistan.</p> </section>
Mon, 18 Jul 2011 21:06:41 +0000Anonymous25757 at http://ncronline.orgBishop to Catholics: Suspend support for cancer fundhttp://ncronline.org/news/faith-parish/bishop-catholics-suspend-support-cancer-fund
<span class="field field-name-field-byline field-type-node-reference field-label-hidden">
Sara Angle </span>
<span class="field field-name-field-byline field-type-node-reference field-label-hidden">
Catholic News Service </span>
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<p><strong>WASHINGTON</strong> -- Bishop Leonard P. Blair of Toledo, Ohio, has told Catholic institutions and schools in the Diocese of Toledo to suspend fundraising efforts for the Susan G. Komen for the Cure, a foundation that supports breast cancer research, and instead direct such donations to a local group of Catholic-run cancer centers.</p><p>In a July 5 letter to Catholics, Bishop Blair cited Komen's contributions to Planned Parenthood and noted the foundation does not exclude the possibility of funding research that uses embryonic stem cells as reasons Catholic entities should not support the nonprofit organization.</p><p>"While we want to do everything possible to support the search for a cure (for cancer), sadly the landscape of medical research today is sometimes marred by the erroneous belief that research is not bound by moral norms rooted in faith and reason, as reflected in the teaching of the church," said Bishop Blair.</p><p>He acknowledged Komen does not currently fund research using embryonic stem cells, but said its "policy does not exclude that possibility."</p> </section>
Wed, 13 Jul 2011 14:38:12 +0000Anonymous25645 at http://ncronline.orgGraduates find time for service http://ncronline.org/news/graduates-find-time-service
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Sara Angle </span>
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Catholic News Service </span>
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<p><strong>WASHINGTON</strong> -- For many young graduates, the bleak job market coupled with the desire to help others is leading them to commit their time to service.</p><p>There are numerous groups that offer service programs for graduates, but organizations such as the St. Vincent Pallotti Center and Catholic Volunteer Network link Catholics with faith-based service opportunities.</p><p>"The thing that makes Catholic volunteer service unique is that you have the pillars for why we do what we do. It's based in the Gospel and Catholic social teaching," Mike Goggin director of the St. Vincent Pallotti Center in Washington, told CNS.</p><p>Rooted in community, simple living and prayer, faith-based service is "appealing for people who want to live a more authentic Christian life," he said.</p><p>The Pallotti Center's mission statement explains that its goal is to "share a vision of church which encourages collaboration, having laity, clergy and religious work together in the mission of the church."</p> </section>
Fri, 08 Jul 2011 13:42:53 +0000Anonymous25577 at http://ncronline.orgKansas man, 75, walks 8,000 miles in solidarity with the poor http://ncronline.org/news/peace-justice/kansas-man-75-walks-8000-miles-solidarity-poor
<span class="field field-name-field-byline field-type-node-reference field-label-hidden">
Sara Angle </span>
<span class="field field-name-field-byline field-type-node-reference field-label-hidden">
Catholic News Service </span>
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<p><strong>WASHINGTON </strong><br />Seventy-five-year-old Bob Hentzen, the president and co-founder of the Christian Foundation for Children and Aging, ended his 17-month, 8,000-mile walk across 12 countries to show solidarity with the poor June 6.</p> </section>
Tue, 07 Jun 2011 19:53:12 +0000ncreditor25038 at http://ncronline.orgDay of prayer launched for Pakistani victims http://ncronline.org/news/global/day-prayer-launched-pakistani-victims
<span class="field field-name-field-byline field-type-node-reference field-label-hidden">
Sara Angle </span>
<span class="field field-name-field-byline field-type-node-reference field-label-hidden">
Catholic News Service </span>
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<p><strong>ROME</strong> -- Catholics and human rights activists have called for a worldwide day of prayer for Asia Bibi and other victims of the anti-blasphemy law in Pakistan.</p><p>The Masihi Foundation, a Pakistani group that works to protect minority rights in Pakistan and is providing legal assistance to Bibi, said the idea was to rally prayerful support April 20, the Wednesday of Holy Week.</p><p>Bibi, a Pakistani Christian woman sentenced to death for blasphemy, has been jailed since June 2009 and still awaits a trial date for her appeal.</p><p>The day of prayer "intends to bring into communion all believers and all people of goodwill in prayer and to light a candle, imploring God's salvation and the freedom of this woman and all who suffer the consequences of being falsely accused of blasphemy," Haroon Masih, the Masihi Foundation's director, told Fides, the news agency of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples.</p><p>Catholic leaders in Pakistan and human rights activists have said the country's anti-blasphemy law has been misused to persecute Christians and other minorities.</p> </section>
Wed, 13 Apr 2011 16:42:07 +0000Anonymous24057 at http://ncronline.orgSocks pope wears now available online http://ncronline.org/news/socks-pope-wears-now-available-online
<span class="field field-name-field-byline field-type-node-reference field-label-hidden">
Sara Angle </span>
<span class="field field-name-field-byline field-type-node-reference field-label-hidden">
Catholic News Service </span>
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<p><strong>ROME</strong> -- Audrey Hepburn had Hubert Givenchy, Rita Hayworth had Jean Louis, Michelle Obama has Jason Wu and the pope has the Gammarellis.</p><p>From their little shop in Rome, the Gammarelli family has been outfitting popes, as well as cardinals, bishops and priests since 1798.</p><p>Now, "Mes Chaussettes Rouges" (My Red Socks), a Paris-based online retailer, is offering a tiny piece of Gammarelli style to the general public.</p><p>"I first saw the red socks in the early '90s on the French prime minister, Edouard Balladur, and thought it was very amusing, but I found out that the Gammarelli socks were only available in Rome," said Vincent Metzger, the proprietor of "Mes Chaussettes Rouges."</p><p>Metzger and a friend created the business initially by purchasing a bulk quantity of socks from Gammarelli and selling them to friends in the summer of 2009.</p><p>They saw a business opportunity, Metzger told Catholic News Service. "We went to Rome again and stayed there for three nights for negotiations, and we made a contract," he said.</p><p>Other than the Gammarelli shop behind the Pantheon in Rome, he said, "Mes Chaussettes Rouges" is the only licensed retailer of Gammarelli products.</p> </section>
Thu, 10 Mar 2011 15:16:44 +0000Anonymous23356 at http://ncronline.orgVatican condemns murder of Pakistani ministerhttp://ncronline.org/news/vatican-condemns-murder-pakistani-minister
<span class="field field-name-field-byline field-type-node-reference field-label-hidden">
Sara Angle </span>
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Catholic News Service </span>
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<p><strong>VATICAN CITY</strong> -- The Vatican condemned the killing of a Catholic government minister in Pakistan who had spoken out against anti-blasphemy laws.</p><p>"The assassination of the Pakistani minister for minorities, Shahbaz Bhatti, is a new and terribly serious act of violence. It demonstrates that the pope is correct in insisting on the issue of violence against Christians and against religious freedom in general," Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, the Vatican spokesman, said March 2.</p><p>Bhatti, the first Catholic to serve in that position, received several threats against his life after criticizing the country's anti-blasphemy laws, which have been used to persecute Christians and other religious minorities.</p><p>Bhatti was received by Pope Benedict XVI last September and spoke about his commitment to promoting peaceful coexistence between the religious communities of his country.</p> </section>
Wed, 02 Mar 2011 16:14:46 +0000Anonymous23205 at http://ncronline.orgCatholic missionaries ready to work in Bhutanhttp://ncronline.org/news/global/catholic-missionaries-ready-work-bhutan
<span class="field field-name-field-byline field-type-node-reference field-label-hidden">
Sara Angle </span>
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Catholic News Service </span>
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<p><strong>VATICAN CITY</strong> -- Catholic missionaries are ready to set up faith communities in Bhutan after the country announced it would accept the registration of Christians for the first time, a Vatican news agency reported.</p> </section>
Fri, 28 Jan 2011 17:14:34 +0000Anonymous22545 at http://ncronline.org